10th Mechanized Corps (Soviet Union)
The 10th Mechanized Corps was a formation in the Soviet Red Army during the Second World War. Initially formed in March 1941 in response the German victories of 1940 it was attached to the Leningrad Military District, & held in reserve near Leningrad fortified region in Soviet Union Glantz, Stumbling Colossus, 1998, p120 It was under the command of Major General I. G. LazarevDavid Glantz, The Battle for Leningrad 1941–1944, 2002, p42 when the German Operation Barbarossa began in June 1941. It initially comprised the 21st and 24th Tank Divisions, & the 198th Mechanized Division.Glantz, Stumbling Colossus, 1998, p229Glantz, Stumbling Colossus, 1998, p127 After the Invasion began the Leningrad Military District was renamed Northern Front, Commanded by Lieutenant General Markian M. Popov. The 10th Mechanized Corps was not involved in the first battles of Operation Barbarossa, being brought out of reserve on 10 July 1941 Brian Taylor, Barbarossa To Berlin A Chronology of the Campaigns on the Eastern Front 1941 to 1945, 2003, p72Glantz, Stumbling Colossus, 1998, p127 to form part of the Luga Operational Group under the command of Lieutenant General K. P. Piadyshev, defending the 'Luga Line'. The defences for which were constructed by 55,000 civilians & which extended from Narva to Shimsk on Lake Ilmen. It first engaged 8th Panzer Division on 13 July 1941 along with the 177th Rifle Division isolating it from its neighbouring divisions for several days around Dno & costing it 70 of its 150 tanks destroyed or damaged.David Glantz, The Battle for Leningrad 1941–1944, 2002, p45 However the Luga Operational Group was encircled & destroyed on 8 August 1941 near Krasnogvardeisk which resulted in losses of 30,000 men, 120 tanks & 400 guns. The 10th Mechanized Corps was officially disbanded a short time later although individual units continued to exist separately for a short while.David Glantz, The Battle for Leningrad 1941–1944, 2002, p67 Footnotes * On 22 June 1941 10th Mechanized Corps consisted 26,168 Men, 469 Tanks, 86 Armoured Cars, 75 Artillery Pieces, 157 Mortars, 1000 Vehicles, 34 Tractors & 460 Motorcycles including lighter models T-26, Bt 7, & T-28's models. * On 11 July 1941 Col P Poluboiarov, Northwestern Front armoured directorate reported that from 10 July, the 21st Tank Division of the 10th Mechanized Corps was put at the disposal of the front. It consisted of one tank regiment, a motorized rifle regiment, an artillery battalion, & other divisional units. It had around 100 old light tanks. Sources & References Further reading * Brian Taylor, Barbarossa To Berlin A Chronology of the Campaigns on the Eastern Front 1941 to 1945, 2003, Spellmount Ltd, ISBN 1-86227-206-9 * David Glantz (1998), 'Stumbling Colossus – The Red Army on the Eve of World War', Kansas. ISBN 0-7006-0879-6 * David Glantz (2002), 'The Battle for Leningrad 1941–1944', Kansas. ISBN 0-7006-1208-4 * Christer Bergstrom, (2007) 'Barbarossa – The Air Battle: July–December 1941, Ian Allan Publishing.ISBN 1-85780-270-5 Category:Mechanized corps of the Soviet Union Category:Military units and formations established in 1941 Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1959